Xin Xin

Basic Profile

Xin Xin (Chinese: 欣欣, “Hope”, studbook number 459) is a female giant panda born on July 1, 1990 at the Chapultepec Zoo in Mexico City, Mexico. She is the daughter of Tohui (studbook 251) — the first overseas-born panda to survive to adulthood and a beloved Mexican cultural icon — and Chia Chia (studbook 213), a male from the London Zoo sent to Mexico as part of the international breeding program.

Xin Xin is the only giant panda in the world not owned by China, a unique status dating from an era when China gifted pandas to friendly nations rather than leasing them. This makes her a living artifact of panda diplomacy history.

Family

Xin Xin is the granddaughter of Ying Ying and Pe Pe, the pair of giant pandas gifted by China to Mexico on September 10, 1975 — the first pandas to live in Latin America. This lineage produced eight pandas at Chapultepec Zoo, five of whom survived to adulthood, making it one of the most successful panda breeding programs outside China.

Xin Xin is the only surviving descendant of this lineage. Her mother Tohui died in 1993 at age 12. Her father Chia Chia died in 1991.

Life Journey

Birth (1990)

Xin Xin was conceived naturally at Chapultepec Zoo with her father Chia Chia, who had been sent from the London Zoo specifically for breeding. She was born weighing only 4 ounces (113 grams) on July 1, 1990.

Life at Chapultepec Zoo

Xin Xin has lived her entire life at Chapultepec Zoo in Mexico City’s Bosque de Chapultepec. Her keeper, Elías García, has cared for her since 2010. She is known for her strong, dominant personality and her love of apples and bamboo. She consumes approximately 10 kilograms of bamboo daily and weighs about 95 kilograms.

Aging and Medical Care

As Xin Xin has aged, the zoo has adapted her care. She undergoes voluntary medical checkups through operant conditioning, allowing blood draws and physical exams without anesthesia — a sign of her strong bond with keepers. She has some age-related mobility limitations but is described as being in good health for her age. She experiences annual artificial insemination attempts with sperm from Chinese panda Ling Ling, though none have been successful.

Cultural Significance

Xin Xin is a major attraction at Chapultepec Zoo, drawing visitors from across Latin America who come to see the region’s only giant panda. The zoo celebrated her 34th birthday in 2024 and her 35th in 2025 with special events. Local media frequently covers her birthday celebrations, and she appears in travel guides as a must-see attraction in Mexico City.

Legacy

Xin Xin represents the final chapter of Mexico’s panda dynasty that began in 1975. She is one of the six oldest living giant pandas under professional care worldwide, having far exceeded the species’ typical life expectancy of 20-25 years. Her unique status as the last China-gifted panda not under a lease agreement means she will likely be the final panda of her kind — a living bridge between the era of panda gifts and the modern era of conservation loans.